Innovative Trials has announced two strategic partnerships with the UK’s Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) Children’s Charity and the US’ Oliver Patch Project to accelerate research into childhood cancers.
The announcement builds on Innovative Trials’ current partnership with the US charity, which was initially forged in 2023, as well as the continuation of the company’s partnership with GOSH Charity, which began in June 2023.
“We have carefully selected our charity partnerships because… there is still a gap in our understanding about how paediatric cancer is caused and the best way to treat it,” said Kate Shaw, founder and chief executive officer of Innovative Trials.
Childhood cancers affect approximately 400,000 children globally every year. The two most common include leukaemia and lymphoma, which, combined, affect more than 6,000 children in the UK and US every year.
Innovative Trials has committed to donating $6 to the Oliver Patch Project every time a child or teenager enrols in a paediatric clinical trial where the sponsor has commissioned Innovative Trials’ Retention Patch Program, as well as raising money for the US non-profit at industry events and through internal fundraising activities.
As part of its Patches of Positive Program, the US charity provides children who are enrolled in one of the organisation’s programmes with colourful and collectable-designed patches throughout their treatment journey, in addition to monthly collectable cards, animations and colouring sheets.
“Our growing partnership with Innovative Trials will mean we can reach out to more children and teenagers, including in other countries,” said founder of Oliver Patch Project, Brian Burkhardt.
In the UK, Innovative Trials has committed to raising money towards Gosh Charity’s Build it. Beat it. appeal, which aims to raise £300m to help build a new Children’s Cancer Centre at GOSH designed to provide increased capacity for research studies and drive transformation in children’s cancer care.
Marina Barnes, head of community fundraising, GOSH Charity, said: “We are so grateful to Innovative Trials for supporting our biggest-ever fundraising appeal to help us build a new [facility] at GOSH… [to] help… improve the odds for children with cancer once and for all.”